Diagnosis to now

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

My 2 monthly scans are happening tomorrow for chest/abdomen/pelvis at John Fawkner Hospital, Melbourne. Prior to this I will have a blood test, fast for 2 hours and drink 1.5 litres of water.
I only have to wait 2 hours after the scan to see my oncologist and get results! I have a good feeling about this scan however it is always scanxiety that kicks in no matter how many scans that we have had over the years as the results are a do or die situation with mesothelioma cancer. It determines whether treatments are/ still working or have stopped. Shrinkage/stability is what we want to hear and breathe a sigh of relief when this happens! When the scans say tumours/fluid on the rise, then it is usually back to the drawing board with our medical team to see what other treatment options we have or to leave the situation for a while as quite often the current treatment is slowly working its magic and takes longer than a few weeks to show success.

I am busy organising my presentation for the ASEA (Asbestos Safety Eradication Agency) International Asbestos Management Conference happening from this weekend to 24 November in Brisbane, Queensland. I am speaking on Keytruda and with the help of my brother Matt, putting together a series of powerpoint slides. Now all that I have to do is to get my speech organised to co-ordinate with this and I will be fine lol! It all comes together on the day and that is what counts.

On Saturday 21 Nov I am hosting/organising a meso warriors get-together in Brisbane, more details after the event - it is to be a really fun and pampered afternoon as I believe warriors so deserve this!
Pictures to come later! Linda Reinstein (CEO/ADAO) will be guest of honour at our get-together!

Well Keith has only one more zapping of radiation to go tomorrow! Yay!! Paperwork to be finalised and blood tests then he is out of there! So he will drop me off at my hospital for appointments then head over to his hospital for radiation across Melbourne city.

On a lighter note, I put our Christmas tree up on Sunday with decorations and lights as this year it is extra special to me - as NO WAY did I ever think I would be here! Thank you Keytruda!

To all warriors doing it tough atm my heart is with you. A young Australian family has just found me through my blog. He has just been diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma aged in his mid 30s. Now they are not on their own, as I will gradually introduce them to the warriors and support with others.